Five Reasons America Won’t Fall Off the ‘Fiscal Cliff’

Relax, America. You can put your parachutes away. Washington isn’t likely to take the country over the dreaded “fiscal cliff.” Even a capital city as deadlocked and dysfunctional as Washington has been in recent years is not likely to risk a move that has so many economic and political ramifications, according to a wide range of experts.
That is not to say the journey won’t be contentious and perhaps a cliffhanger. Don’t forget, the same cast of characters is starring in this big-screen epic - either a dark comedy or a thriller, take your pick - that has brought Americans to this point before: Democrats ruling the White House and Senate, and Republicans, including a clique of unyielding conservatives, in power in the House.
Yet analysts on both sides of the aisle believe that doing nothing, which on Jan. 1 would trigger the beginning of $600 billion in tax increases and large cuts to the federal budget, would inflict too much damage on individuals’ wallets, on the economy, and on America’s standing in the world.